CNET’s Cheapskate scours the Web for great deals on PCs, phones, gadgets and much more. Questions about the Cheapskate blog? Find the answers on our FAQ page. And find more great buys on the CNET Deals page. Cheeps! This a rerun of sorts as I shared an Echo deal back in April. That one was …

In Silicon Valley, hype and praise can only get you so far. The latest example is Facebook’s Paper app, originally revealed in January 2014 as a new way to read news while also surfing the social network. The app had two main functions: a feed of friend’s photos, videos and other activities, and a stream of news stories picked by …

Now playing: Watch this: Spotify and Apple in an App Store spat, says report 1:22 Apple has never won any friends with its policy of taking a cut out of in-app purchases, but it may be turning Spotify into a full-fledged enemy. Spotify’s lawyer sent a letter to Apple, accusing the gadget giant of rejecting an update to its app …

Well, well, well. Samsung is taking matters into its own hands by selling completely unlocked versions of its flagship Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge phones in the US. Starting today (Thursday), you can pick up the unlocked S7 for $670 and the Galaxy S7 Edge for $770 from Samsung.com, Amazon, BestBuy, Target and more. Unlocked phones — which aren’t tied …

Google is investigating reports of an issue Thursday with its Calendar app, a spokesperson confirmed. The company’s app status page showed a service disruption logged at 6:47 a.m. PT, with an update at 7:35 a.m. PT saying Google is continuing to investigate. It expects to have an update at 8:30 a.m. PT on when the problem will be resolved. Update, …

Verizon customers may soon get a bunch of perks. The nation’s largest carrier is likely set to unveil a rollover data program, a way to remove overage fees and better access to Canada and Mexico. It’ll make the carrier more competitive, but we discuss whether it’ll actually get folks to jump ship. We also look at Amazon Prime Day, slated …

Earlier this month, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg had his social media accounts hacked. Now, Brendan Iribe, CEO of the Facebook-backed Oculus, has apparently suffered the same fate. “We here @oculus are very excited to announce our new CEO. @Lid!”, a tweet made by his account read. That was just the beginning, with the intruder following with:”imagine creating the coolest s*** …

If you’re sick of having your view of Adele obscured by a thousand iPhones trying to film her, things are looking up. Apple was awarded a US patent this week for a system that can force your iPhone into disabling video-recording functions at concert venues. The system uses infrared signals to send messages to your phone to tell it to …

Plex and Nvidia recently announced the Android TV-powered Shield was gaining the ability to run Plex’s Media Server software. Earlier this week, the update went live for all Shield owners. Regardless of your networking know-how, you can run a server of your very own with very little effort. Why do you want to run a Plex Server? Using Plex as …

The S Pen stylus in Samsung’s upcoming Note 7 could have a brand new surface to skate on, if the latest rumor is true. This year’s version of the Note line, which is known for the power of its digital pen, could ditch the Note 5’s pin-straight sides and adopt vertical curves like the S7 Edge, according to tech site …

Space exploration and music have a long history together, with astronauts on moon missions traditionally being woken up by mission control with a musical selection. So it makes sense that with the Juno probe mere days from its destination of Jupiter’s orbit, NASA would like some music to mark the occasion. So the US space agency teamed up with Apple …

Sending music over Bluetooth inevitably cuts into sound quality, but headphone brands can no longer ignore the convenience of wireless in the personal audio space. B&O PLAY introduced the Beoplay A7 wireless over-ear headphones earlier this year, and now the company is cutting the cord again with its newest addition, the Beoplay H5 wireless earbuds. Since the headphone industry is …

Will Robinson will soon find himself in danger again, thanks to Netflix. The internet-streaming giant announced Wednesday that it has ordered 10 one-hour episodes of an updated “Lost in Space,” based on the popular 1960s classic sci-fi series. The show, which will premiere in 2018, is likely to be a bit edgier than the Irwin Allen original, which aired for …

Now playing: Watch this: Amazon discounts Android phones, if you’re willing to… 1:35 If you could save a few bucks on a new phone by allowing ads on your lockscreen, would you do it? That’s the idea Amazon is pitching with a new offer to its Prime members for two unlocked budget phones. Starting Wednesday, the e-commerce giant will take …

Let’s say all the rumors are true and Google did make its own house-branded phone by the end of 2016, which is soon. The question, then, with all the givens in place, is which direction Google would take: a superpremium device to battle Apple’s iPhone in hand-to-hand combat, something simple like the Nexus series, or an avant-garde approach, say a …